US stock futures move sideways with more Fedspeak, rate cues on tap

Investing.com-- U.S. stock index futures traded sideways in evening deals on Wednesday as a recent recovery in Wall Street stalled after a string of Federal Reserve officials warned that interest rates will remain high for longer.

This put upcoming addresses by more Fed officials on Thursday and Friday squarely in focus, especially after recent data showed some cooling in the U.S. economy. 

Some underwhelming quarterly earnings also weighed on sentiment, with chip designer Arm Holdings (NASDAQ:ARM) and homestay platform Airbnb Inc (NASDAQ:ABNB) falling in aftermarket trade. 

S&P 500 Futures fell 0.1% to 5,209.75 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures fell 0.1% to 18,163.75 points by 19:16 ET (23:16 GMT). Dow Jones Futures steadied at 39,196.0 points.

Wall St stalls as Fed officials downplay rate cut bets

A recent recovery in Wall Street ran out of steam on Wednesday after a string of Fed officials warned that the central bank was more likely to keep rates steady this year amid high inflation.

They cited persistent concerns over sticky inflation as the biggest driver of steady rates, even as recent data showed some cooling in the labor market, which is another point of consideration for the Fed. 

The Fed comments sparked a rebound in the dollar and Treasury yields, which in turn weighed on stock markets. The S&P 500 ended flat at 5,187.67 points on Wednesday, while the NASDAQ Composite fell nearly 0.2% to 16,302.76 points.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4% to 39,056.39 points, supported by gains in Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) amid persistent optimism over the drugmaker’s weight loss injection. 

More Fed officials are due in the coming days, with San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly set to speak on Thursday, while Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee will speak on Friday. 

Beyond the Fedspeak, key U.S. inflation readings are on tap next week.

Arm sinks on weak guidance, rattles chipmakers

British chip designer Arm fell nearly 10% in aftermarket trade after its annual revenue guidance largely disappointed investors. 

While Arm’s March-quarter earnings beat estimates, the weak guidance raised questions over just how much of a recent artificial intelligence-driven melt-up in valuations was justified. 

Arm’s report sparked aftermarket losses in chipmakers NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD). AMD had clocked largely in-line March-quarter earnings, while Nvidia is set to report earnings for the period next week. 

Among other aftermarket movers, Airbnb fell 7% on disappointing annual guidance, while Bumble Inc (NASDAQ:BMBL) rose on forecasting strong earnings growth.

Trading platform Robinhood Markets Inc (NASDAQ:HOOD) rose nearly 4% after clocking strong quarterly earnings on higher user figures.